Jo Johnson last night launched his latest book, "Reconnecting Britain and India: Ideas for an Enhanced Partnership", at a reception in 11 Downing Street.

Co-edited with Dr Rajiv Kumar, Secretary-General of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the book is a collection of thirty four original essays, including introductions by both the British and Indian prime ministers, David Cameron and Dr Manmohan Singh.

As the former South Asia Bureau Chief for the FT, Jo recognises the significance of the coalition Government's call for an 'enhanced partnership' with India and understands that future cooperation will be immensely valuable for the UK in supporting British manufacturing and jobs,  developing our counterterrorism capabilities and promoting British interests overseas. 

Written by contributors based all over the world, designed in the UK and printed in India, in record time and at low cost, the book has attempted to be a model for the UK-India collaboration it seeks to support.  Jo  said at the launch that the crisis in the eurozone underlined the importance for the UK, as it seeks to get out of the slow lane of economic recovery, of doing everything it could to turbo-charge the global partnership with India.

Jo said: "As David Cameron says in his introduction to this book, India currently has the whole world beating a path to its door. In this ultra competitive environment, Britain cannot rely on sentiment or shared history for a special place in India's future. It needs to prove its worth and show what it has to offer and that's what this book is about for me.

 India's success is of strategic importance not just to the UK, but to all open societies and the UK is determined to do all it can to be a partner in that process. Our brilliant contributors have produced a book that is full of ideas for how our two countries can re-connect and, by making a strong relationship even stronger, forge what David Cameron has described as "the first genuine 21st Century Partnership. "

The launch was hosted by the Minister of State for Trade and Investment, Lord Green of Hurstpierpoint.  Anand Sharma, India's Minister for Commerce and Industry, gave the keynote address at the event. Other speakers included Dr Kumar and Rajan Bharti Mittal, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of Bharti Enterprises.